The Hankou Rebellion
by Tears of Corruption
Summary: Shango Punch, a commander in the Hankou Rebellion, has lost his best friend to the war. He remembers nothing of his past, but knows it is his destiny to end the war--because no one has the right to take the life of another.
1. Chapter 1: Shango Punch

Shango Punch gazed out the window of his tiny shuttlecraft, looking in awe at the tremendous warship ahead of him. The warship was a United Earth cruiser, and looked something like a gray sausage with four huge red fins protruding out of it's sides. In between the fins, there were a ridiculously large amount of blaze cannons, and shield generators.  
It had been three years since the United Earth defeated the savage alien race, the Voinians, in a catastrophic war. The Voinians out powered the United Earth's navy with incredibly powerful, but slow, ships.  
The UE had fought back with weaker, but more nimble ships, and a fleet of swift fighters that could run circles around any Voinian ship. Even so, every day the Voinians were gaining on the UE; destroying more and more of their ships.  
Then came the UE cruiser. Anna Balashova, a woman who had designed all of the United Earth warships, designed the cruiser, which could take on a number of Voinian ships at one. The tides of the war changed, and the UE started to win.  
Five years later, the galaxy was relatively devoid of any Voinian activity whatsoever. The UE rushed to colonize what was left of Voinian space, and soon it was a bustling web of trading and profit.  
Then came the Hankou. One by one, the former Voinian systems blinked out of UE control. The Hankou were an organized rebellion, and even had their own naval fleet. They had constructed the fleet north of Azdgari space during the UE/Voinian war, patiently waiting until it was time to attack.  
The UE, just getting over the aftermath of the Voinian war, were furious. They organized a mega fleet, containing dozens of UE cruisers, carriers, and destroyers. Expecting to quickly overpower the Hankou, they marched right in, and watched in tears as their fleet was ripped apart by the much faster Hankou ships.  
"The end of one war is the beginning of another, my father used to say," Shango told his co-pilot, Dash Skarii.  
Dash continued to stare at the UE cruiser with a blank, emotionless look on his face and quietly muttered "Yeah."  
Shango felt sorry that he had to bring his lifelong friend along for such a suicidal mission. A few months ago, Punch was a mere smuggler doing blockade runs for the Hankou. Now he was Commander Punch, leader of the 134th Hankou fighter squad, Raven Squadron. He was to distract the UE cruiser's fire while a few Hankou warships jumped into the system and took down the unprepared cruiser.  
The craziest part of the mission was how Shango was going to distract the cruiser's fire. He was to do this by firing on the cruiser from his unshielded shuttlecraft. The shuttlecraft, with shield generators removed, had enough space to be outfitted by a small pursuit missile launcher. He was to fire his load of missiles at the cruiser, then dodge the laser blasts from the cruiser until the Hankou warships arrived.  
Crazy, Shango thought, crazy.  
Before he knew it, it was time to get on with the mission.  
He switched on his target computer, and typed in the coordinates of the cruiser. Above him, he could hear the missile turret turning; aiming at the UE cruiser. He hit a bright red, flashing button below his legs.  
"Wolves one, two, three, four. Launch."  
Shango's shuttle rocked as the four explosive cylinders launched towards the cruiser. Each one smacked into the shields, exploding in bright green flames.  
"Did I ever tell you what they put in those missiles to make the fire green?" Dash said as Shango prepared the shuttle for evasive actions.  
"No, but tell me later...if we survive. Fasten your seat belt, and prepare for evasive actions."  
"Ok. Good luck."  
The first few blasts of bright red light came zooming at them from the UE cruiser's blaze cannons. A sharp turn to the left had the lasers flying right past them, but hundreds more lasers and missiles were coming at them.  
"They just launched two squadrons of UE fighters! Dammit, they're coming right at us!" Dash screamed as the shuttle jerked upwards, dodging a missile.  
"Alright, it's time. Commander Shango Punch to General Screer!" Shango said through his comm while dodging a barrage of laser blasts.  
"General Screer here. Is it time?"  
"Oh yeah, sir. Bring in the ships-" Shango was cut off as a laser blast slammed into the hull of his ship, sending him spinning out of control. "Bring in the ships, now!"  
"Acknowledged. We should be there in roughly thirty seconds." General Screers voice said through the comm.  
"Dash, prepare to initiate.Dash, hey? Dash?" Shango said with fear in his voice. Dash was not answering.  
Shango slowly turned his head to see a huge hole in Dash's stomach where the laser blast had gone through him.  
"SHIT!" Shango screamed. "My friend is dead, and we're leaking atmosphere!"  
He looked at the UE cruiser, noticing that no fire had been directed at him for a while. The cruiser was in flames. All around it, sleek black Hankou warships fired veils of deep blue lasers that smashed into the cruisers hull.  
"Commander Shango Punch reporting. Requesting dock with Tranquility's Harvest. Co-pilot dead, atmosphere venting." Shango said dully as tears streamed down his face.  
Dash, you can't be dead! The smell of burning flesh was already overwhelming his senses. He looked again and noticed that Dash was still breathing. A closer look uncovered that is was just the ship rocking back and forth. More tears streamed down Shango's face.  
He brought his shuttle towards the dock of the Hankou cruiser Tranquility's Harvest. He spared one last glance at the UE cruiser. Although it was still firing a small amount of laser blasts, the hull was torn in half, and over half the shipls crew was dead.  
Why do all these people have to die? No war is needed for our purpose. Do people remember diplomacy anymore!? Shango screamed with rage and punched his fist through the control board of the shuttlecraft. Sparks flew everywhere, burning him all around.  
"But the pain...feels good..."  
It had been a long and tiresome day. Shango sighed, then collapsed into the sparking control board. 


	2. Chapter 2: No one has the right!

Shango awoke in a bright white room, his face burning with a pain so intense it sent waves of nausea of his body. He sat up, and remembered collapsing into the sparking control board.  
A quick glance at a mirror on the other side of the room revealed that his face was scarred with red slashes and patches all over his cheeks and forehead.  
Scarred for life...  
A nurse with long black hair and thick glasses walked into the room, looked at him and smiled, then grabbed a stack of papers and left. He smiled back at her, then collapsed back into the pillows, quickly falling asleep.  
  
Shango was sitting on a bench in a playground surrounded by lush green trees, and pretty pink flowers. His best friend Dash was swinging from a tire that was tied to a metal chain which was connected to a long, bright red pole.  
Shango smiled, jumped out of the bench, and started running over to Dash. He wanted nothing more badly then to swing on the tire all day long with his best friend Dash.  
As he jogged over to the tire swing, his foot got caught in a weed, and he flew forward, his face slamming into the ground. He stood up, blood gushing out of his nose.  
He tried not to cry. He didn't want the big boys to think he was a baby. He looked to Dash for support, but Dash had a large burining hole in his chest. Tears started flowing down Shango's face, and he collapsed in a heap on the ground.  
Everyone around him was...laughing.  
Shango cried.  
  
Shango shot out of his bed with a jolt. His face still burned, but the pain was little and barely noticable. The brown-haired nurse was in the room, checking his vitals, and she quickly turned to see what the commotion was.  
"Is there something the matter, Commander Shango?" The nurse asked, giving him a worrisome look.  
"I...I had a terrible nightmare. My best friend, Dash, he was dead. And I was hurt and crying! And everybody was laughing at me, and--"  
"Shango," the nurse said, "Everything is ok."  
Shango's eyes went wide. "But Dash! Where's Dash?"  
The nurse sighed, looking down at the ground. "Dash was killed in your last mission. Surely you remember?"  
His eyes swelled with tears. "I...I don't remember anything, I just..." His voice trailed off. "I don't remember anything."  
"What do you remember, Shango?" the nurse asked him quietly.  
"I...we...were on a mission. Dash...was with me. Dash was gonna tell me," tears streamed down from his eyes, "He was gonna tell me what they put in the missiles to make the explosions green. And then we got hit by a blast, we were spinning...a huge hole in Dash's stomach..."  
Shango stood up, his face red with rage. He punched his fist through the screen displaying his vitals. "Nobody had to die," he screamed, "This war is pointless! Nobody has the right to take somebody else's life. Nobody!" He collapsed back into the bed, crying and screaming at the same time.  
"Shango, it's ok, everything will be--"  
Shango stood up, and barged towards the exit of the room. "Nothing will be ok, dammit! Nothing!" He opened the door with so much force it ripped right off the hinges, slamming into the nurse. She screamed.  
"Shango, wait! You're not ready to leave!"  
"Shut up," he said, and walked away. 


	3. Chapter 3: Please Listen

"Two weeks in the military and I'm already ready to leave," Shango muttered as he walked slowly down one of the numerous hallways in the Hankou warship he was on. He had no idea where he was heading, but he had to speak with someone important.  
  
I have to try to stop this war, he thought.  
  
He looked to his left just in time to see a door there open abruptly. He jumped out of the way as a man flew out of the room and slammed into the wall on the other side of the hallway. The man was rather short, but had long, shiny black hair. His bright green eyes glowed with anger as he stood up. Shango saw the insignia on his uniform, stating he was a lieutenant.  
  
A tall man with fading gray hair walked out of the room, his face red with rage. Shango recognized the man, he was a general who used to be the commander of Shango's squadron.  
  
"Lieutenant Bragsby, the Hankou can no longer accept your failure! You've lost us over a dozen fighters, and have been demoted three times! You are a dishonor to yourself and the Hankou!"  
  
The lieutenant's face turned bright red. "Well, I may get a little careless sometimes," he screamed, "But I'm one of your best pilots! You'll regret this!" He tore of his rank insignia and throw it to the general's feet.  
  
The redness in the general's face started to fade away as the former lieutenant ran off. He looked to his left, noticing Shango for the first time.  
  
"Ah, Commander Punch. Excellent work on your last mission." The general smiled, then turned it to a frown quickly. "I grieve for your losses, Punch. Lieutenant Dash Skarii will always live on in our memories."  
  
"Thank you, sir."  
  
The general smiled again. "What is it that brings you here, Commander?"  
  
"General WIlliams, sir, I have an idea...a tactic, to help us settle the war." Shango frowned. He hadn't planned what he was going to say yet.  
  
"Ah. We always respect the opinions of our Commanders. Go on." General WIlliams looked down at his watch. He had an urgent meeting to attend to.  
  
"Sir, I, uh, well...it's the war, sir. We should stop it."  
  
General Williams fought hard not to scream. "Commander Punch, that's ridiculous! We have to stop the United Earth, we--"  
  
"But why, sir? Why must we fight the UE? Hundreds of thousands of people have died already! It's not right, it's--"  
  
"Shango!" Williams screamed, "I don't have time to listen to your nonsense. You want peace? Go live with the Miranu!" The general's face was bright red again, and he stomped his foot on the ground, full of rage. He walked off, clenching his fists.  
  
Shango watched, his eyes filled with tears, as the murderer Williams walked away.  
  
* * *  
  
"Ravens two, three, form up on my tail. Four and five, take out that fighter on three's tail!" Shango smiled. It felt good to be among his friends again.  
  
His fighter banked left swiftly as a red blaze cannon blast swept past him. The Hankou fighters were of the same design as the United Earth's, but they were painted a serene, deep blue. They were also outfitted with the highly powerful Hankou blaster cannons. Or so his squadron mates thought.  
  
Last night, Shango had altered the power flow to his squadron's blaster cannons, setting them so they would disable rather then destroy.  
  
"Raven two, reporting power failure to both cannons. Should I withdraw and get some repairs done?"  
  
"Negative, two. You should still have enough power to disable their fighters."  
  
"Acknowledged, Commander."  
  
Shango laughed. His plan had worked perfectly. A few people would be spared today.  
  
He turned quickly to the right, pulling around behind a bright red UE fighter. The fighter tried to shake him, but was quickly in his targeting brackets. He squeezed the trigger on the piloting yolk, and two bright blue laser blast flew out of his ship and rammed into the aft of the UE fighter. The fighter sparked, and the engines stopped, but the pilot inside was still alive.  
  
"UE Carrier Path of Oblivion, this is Commander Shango Punch of the 134th Hankou Fighter Squadron, Raven Squadron. You have a few disabled fighter out here. You may want to pick them up before they are lost." He smiled. Nobody will ever die at the hands of my squadron again, he thought.  
  
"This is General Kragg of the United Earth Carrier Path of Oblivion. We acknowledge your report, although we do not understand your motives. But thank you, brave pilot."  
  
Shango couldn't help but laugh. He was soon cut short, though, as a red blast slammed into his aft shielding. His fighter started spinning uncontrollably, and his head slammed into the metal plate at his side. The bout of dizziness that washed over him did nothing to help. He switched on the emergency afterburners, and tried to angle his ship back into straight flight, but the afterburners had been damaged when he was hit.  
  
"I'm screwed," he muttered under his breath as he worked with the controls.  
  
A quick glance at the control board made him aware that his shields were malfunctioning, and would be off within seconds. The alert siren was blazing in his ears, alerting him that there was a missile heading his way. As his ship spun around, he saw the missile coming towards him. The next time his ship swung around, he saw a Hankou fighter fly right in front of the missile, saving him from certain death. Shango gasped. That was one of his best friends, Raven three. Alexia.  
  
"I'd take a bullet for you any day, Shango!" he remembered those words coming from her mouth.  
  
A minute ago he had been laughing with joy. Now tears streamed from his eyes, and he screamed in rage. He couldn't stand the fact that his fighter was out of control. He grabbed the yolk and tugged at it, one last mediocre attempt to right his fighter. He looked out at the space in front of him. Only there was no space in front of him.  
  
Shango gasped as he realized his fighter was hurtling towards the humongous United Earth carrier.  
  
"I'm going to run into it. I'm going to die." 


End file.
